Ella’s Kitchen, established in 2006 by Ella’s father, Paul Lindley, holds a strong commitment to prioritizing health and nutritional value without compromising on taste or convenience for children up to the age of 5 years, and with a focus on the 4-12 month range. The brand strives to be good in every sense, offering healthy, handy, and enjoyable food that is also environmentally conscious. In 2016, Ella’s Kitchen® Brand obtained B Corporation certification, aligning with a global movement of companies dedicated to using their businesses as a force for good.
Providing a range of food for children at various ages, Ella’s Kitchen recognized the importance of enhancing their customer engagement and eCRM strategy to drive business growth. Three years ago, they made the decision to partner with Mapp, for its expertise in delivering exceptional customer communications and strategic support throughout their weaning journeys and beyond.
Results
240,000
People reached with their Eat.Play.Love campaign
30+
Automated weaning and toddler journeys
Results
GETTING THE RIGHT INGREDIENTS TOGETHER TO ENHANCE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT
Mapp and Ella’s Kitchen collaborated to establish the foundation of their eCRM strategy, focusing on enhancing customer engagement. A key aspect of this collaboration was persona-based targeting, where four distinct personas representing specific segments of expecting parents and parents with young children were carefully developed. These personas were crafted through detailed analysis of customer data, including information gathered during the website subscription process.
Leveraging persona-based targeting, Ella’s Kitchen optimized their marketing efforts by delivering more relevant content at the right time, offering comprehensive support throughout each child’s nutritional journey. As a result, Ella’s Kitchen strengthened its popular Friends program, which reached over 1.1 million subscribers. This program delivers personalized emails filled with timely tips, recipes, product news, coupons, and a free weaning guide, among other valuable resources. The Friends program continues to boast an impressive 44% open rate and a high click-through rate.
Automation was another important aspect of the collaboration. Mapp automated 20 + new toddler journeys, catering to parents of children aged 12 to 36 months. This ensured that they received tailored and valuable information precisely when they needed it the most. This automation milestone reflected Ella’s Kitchen’s commitment to providing continuous support and nurturing experiences throughout the toddler years.
Mapp continues to be a trusted partner, empowering us to connect with our customers in a more targeted and impactful manner. Together we have achieved outstanding results and Mapp continue to help us act as an advocate for parents and carers of little ones, and drive our brand forward through a very personal media channel. We look forward to further projects with them as we continue to enhance our customer engagement and eCRM strategy to make our emails the ones that people get excited about opening!
Alex Spencer
Senior Marketing Manager at Ella's Kitchen
Ella's Kitchen has established itself as a leader in the organic baby and toddler food industry, and we are thrilled to have been working with them since 2021. Working closely with the Ella's Kitchen team over the past two and a half years has been immensely rewarding. I am proud of the accomplishments we've achieved together and excited about the promising developments ahead.
Alistair Hutchison
Senior Customer Success Manager at Mapp
Challenges
NOURISHING ENGAGEMENT AND GROWTH
After successfully building their engagement strategy, Ella’s Kitchen took their enhanced communications to the next level.
Expanded nurture program
Ella’s Kitchen aimed to provide further support for the 3-5-year age group, aligning with their “Holding Hands for Longer” goal as part of their eCRM strategy. By extending the age range and introducing additional customer journeys, Ella’s Kitchen effectively reached a new audience. Their well-crafted communications played a pivotal role in educating and guiding parents through their children’s mealtime journeys. The program achieved remarkable success, making a significant impact in engaging and supporting parents during this crucial developmental stage.
To elevate the experience for little ones, Ella’s Kitchen and Mapp collaborated on captivating omnichannel promotions featuring their beloved Hungry Caterpillar snack range at ASDA. These initiatives added an extra layer of delight and appeal to the brand’s offerings, resulting in enhanced customer engagement and increased brand awareness.
EPL truck launch
A standout moment in the partnership was the highly successful Eat.Play.Love (EPL) truck launch, a significant milestone aligned with Ella’s Kitchen’s strategic goals. The EPL truck embarked on a nationwide tour, bringing sensory food play to early years across the country. This interactive experience encouraged preschool children to explore different fruits and vegetables using their senses, fostering a positive relationship with healthy food choices. Complementing this EPL, Ella’s Kitchen and Mapp collaborated to promote and deliver free educational resources for early years educators.
Thanks to Mapp’s expertise, Ella’s Kitchen effectively promoted the Eat.Play.Love campaign throughout the UK, reaching an impressive audience of over 240,000 individuals. The communications achieved an average open rate of 34.75%, highlighting the compelling impact of their targeted omnichannel approach.
Solutions
5 for the under 5s by Ella's Kitchen
Ella’s mantra has always been to put little futures first, and you can see this is at the heart of everything they do. To ensure their work has the greatest impact possible, and give a voice to their ‘little lobbyists’, they will be partnering with various charities, including the RSPB and Action for Children, to support their work tackling food access, child poverty and the nature crisis. Alongside being a Certified B Corp, Ella’s is committed to showing that businesses can and should be a force for good: Good for Tiny Tummies, being Good to the Planet and doing Good Business. Their commitment includes:
1. Putting future generations at the heart of government policy by setting up an Early Years Commission to advise on legislation and help protect children’s futures
2. Doubling fruit and vegetable intake by 2030 by raising the value of Healthy Start vouchers and increasing funding
3. Ending child poverty by 2040 by ending the two-child limit in the benefit system
4. Creating connections with nature by prioritizing this in early years education
5. Safeguarding our planet and food supply by working to deliver on an ambitious “30 by 30” wildflower target, which will see them working to protect and restore an area totalling 30 million square feet of nature-rich wildflower and grassland meadows by 2030
What's next?
Looking ahead, Ella’s Kitchen has exciting plans for the future. They are set to introduce new age-based toddler emails, further enhancing their communication and support for parents during this crucial stage. Additionally, they are expanding their 36 months plus food ranges with the launch of new product lines. We are thrilled to continue supporting Ella’s Kitchen on their journey to provide nutritious meals for children, as they strive to make a positive impact on the health and well-being of young ones everywhere.
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